GREENSBORO, N.C. – Reagan Armour hit a tournament-record three home runs and No. 3 seed Chattanooga rallied for seven runs over the final two innings to down No. 1 seed UNCG in the title game of the Southern Conference Softball Championship at UNCG Softball Stadium on Saturday, 9-7 in eight innings.
 
With their 15th SoCon tournament title, the Mocs (29-25) claimed the SoCon’s automatic bid to the NCAA Regionals. The selection show will air on ESPN2 on Sunday at 7 p.m. ET.
 
Chattanooga trailed the Spartans 7-2 entering the seventh inning, and UNCG (39-18) was just three outs from forcing another game to decide the title. The Mocs had other ideas, however, staging an incredible five-run rally to stay alive.
 
After one-out singles from Emily Coltharp and Kailey Snell, Armour crushed her second homer of the day out to left center to draw the Mocs within a pair. UTC was far from done, as Olivia Lipari drew a two-out walk and Kaili Phillips hit a deep bomb to left to tie the contest at seven.
 
UTC starter Brooke Parrott returned to the circle for the seventh and retired the defending champion Spartans in order, sending the game to extras. Adison Keylon led off the top of the eighth with a mammoth home run over the scoreboard in right center to put the Mocs on top for the first time on the day, and two outs later, Armour completed the hat trick with another long ball to center, giving Chattanooga a 9-7 lead.
 
Tournament Most Outstanding Player Parrott handled it from there, working around a one-out walk in the bottom half to get a fly out and a strikeout to nail down the win, her 15th of the season.
 
The wild finish came after UNCG seemed to have taken control with five unanswered runs over the middle innings. Jordan Gontram’s two-run home run to center in the bottom of the fourth broke a 2-2 tie and was UNCG’s 100th longball of the season. Delaney Cumbie extended the Spartans’ program record to 101 with another two-run shot an inning later, while Brooklynn Maxwell made it 102 with her solo blast in the sixth that made it a 7-2 affair.
 
All told, the teams combined for eight homers, as the Mocs hit five of their own on the day.
 
The Spartans had taken an early 2-0 lead on Maxwell’s RBI double and a wild pitch in the second inning before Armour hit a solo shot in the third and Gracey Kruse stroked an RBI double in the fourth to tie it.
 
UNCG’s Morgan Scott, the SoCon Pitcher of the Year, reached 600 strikeouts for her career with her seventh of the afternoon, adding two more to finish with a program-record 286 this season, which ranks fifth in a season in SoCon history.
 
Parrott (15-7) was charged with two earned runs on two hits in five innings of work. Scott (25-12) surrendered four earned runs on five hits and three walks – all three of which came in the first inning – in 7 1/3 innings.
 
UTC’s Armour finished the day 3-for-4 with five RBIs, while Phillips was 2-for-3 with two RBIs. Maxwell had the lone two-hit game for UNCG, while she, Gontram and Cumbie each had two RBIs.

 
Tournament Most Outstanding Player
Brooke Parrott, Jr., RHP, Chattanooga
 
Pinnacle Award (highest GPA on championship-winning team)
Liz Rodebaugh, So., C, Chattanooga
 
All-Tournament Team
Madison Headley, Mercer
Diamond Williams, Mercer
Delaney Cumbie, UNCG
Makenna Matthijs, UNCG
Morgan Scott, UNCG
McKayla Cothran, Samford
Ansley Yantis, Samford
Reagan Armour, Chattanooga
Emily Coltharp, Chattanooga
Brooke Parrott, Chattanooga
Kaili Phillips, Chattanooga
 
2022 SoCon Softball Championship (all games on ESPN+)
Greensboro, N.C.
Wednesday, May 11
Game 1: No. 4 Furman 4, No. 5 Mercer 3
Game 2: No. 2 Samford 4, No. 7 ETSU 3 (9 inn.)
Game 3: No. 3 Chattanooga 3, No. 6 Western Carolina 2 (10 inn.)
 
Thursday, May 12
Game 4: No. 6 Western Carolina 3, No. 7 ETSU 2
Game 5: No. 1 UNCG 9, No. 4 Furman 0 (5 inn.)
Game 6: No. 3 Chattanooga 4, No. 2 Samford 0
Game 7: No. 4 Furman 8, No. 6 Western Carolina 5
Game 8: No. 2 Samford 7, No. 5 Mercer 6
 
Friday, May 13
Game 9: No. 3 Chattanooga 10, No. 1 UNCG 2 (5 inn.)
Game 10: No. 2 Samford 6, No. 4 Furman 1
Game 11: No. 1 UNCG 3, No. 2 Samford 0
 
Saturday, May 14
Game 12: No. 3 Chattanooga 9, No. 1 UNCG 7 (8 inn.)